"Here, this is your equipment and wages, one ten days' salary," said Lu Gang, the Black Hand, gesturing to the several peripheral members standing to the side to bring over the items.
A "xun" is ten days, so the Song Dynasty did not have the concept of "week" or "week". In the world before Chen Jing transmigrated, the "seven-day week" setting came from the West. However, Chen Jing had occasionally heard that there seemed to be similar timekeeping methods elsewhere, using the so-called star-shine timekeeping, which used seven different star-shine days to count as a "week".
Just as some soldiers dressed as militiamen came over carrying cloth bags, Lu Gang continued:
"You will become members of the reconnaissance team, responsible for preliminary terrain and danger exploration work."
Chen Jing took the cloth bag, opened it curiously, and found a box of matches; a wooden box the size of a laptop; three small bags that looked exactly like the instant sticks Chen Jing had seen before his transmigration, except they were unpackaged and made of cloth; two different styles of wood incense, one painted gold and the other gray; and a small porcelain bottle.
What's even more eye-catching are the more than twenty gold coins at the bottom of the bag, which are heavy metal coins commonly used in various countries.
Lu Gang said, "Apart from the pills in the bottle, everything else is consumable and will be distributed every ten days. The bottle contains the Golden Turtle Descending to the Sea Pill, which has multiple uses and is an extremely precious healing pill. Each person can receive a maximum of one per year, and if you want more, you need to apply and purchase it."
The elegant young woman, He Lili, asked in a pleasant voice, "Lord Black Hand, what are the various applications of the Golden Turtle Sea-Diving Pill? Isn't it just a matter of eating it?"
Lu Gang, the Black Hand, replied, "From now on, your captain will be Mo Wuge. You can ask him how to use the items."
“You also have rooms on the big ship, Mowug knows that, and you can ask him about your mission and work.”
Behind Lu Gang, the mastermind, Mo Wuge followed him cautiously, like a servant.
After giving his orders, Black Hand left with the others. Some returned to the ship, while others went to other parts of the city instead of returning to the ship.
Soon, only Mo Wuge, Chen Jing, and others remained in this area.
Just as Chen Jing was about to speak, Dao Nan interrupted him, saying, "Hello, Captain."
Zhang Taoying's face lit up with a new smile once again, and she said in a sweet voice, "Hello, Captain, please take care of me."
Chen Jing and the others were a little slower, but they still greeted them.
Mo Wuge, carrying a rifle and a longsword at his waist, said, "Hello, let me first introduce the functions of our reconnaissance team. Has any of you ever been in a scavenging group and participated in expeditions with the group?"
“I’ve been there!” Li Ai raised her hand as if answering a teacher’s question.
Chen Jing and Dao Nan also raised their hands.
“Very good.” Mo Wuge’s smile seemed slightly stiff to Chen Jing. Chen Jing suspected that he wasn’t prepared for being interrupted, but he seemed completely unsure how to get angry, and could only nod awkwardly.
“Our reconnaissance team is actually the gang’s scouts and vanguard. When we’re moving through the dead fog, the fog will obstruct our vision, so someone needs to move ahead of the main force. If we encounter danger, we can warn the people behind us.”
"The reconnaissance team undertakes similar work."
Chen Jing and the others were not surprised, as they had anticipated this. However, Chen Jing was not surprised to see worry and tension on the faces of the others.
“But we are different from ordinary hunting groups. The places we explore are more dangerous, so the distance between us and the main force is... quite far, so they can only provide information support at the first moment..." Mo Wuge took out a candle, which looked quite familiar.
It seems to be the candle Huang Yuanlong used when he was talking to the black hand Lu Gang. It smells like a corpse... Chen Jing thought to himself.
"May I ask you a question, Captain?"
A clear, melodious voice rang out. Chen Jing turned his head and looked at the speaker, He Lili, an elegant girl holding a notebook in her hand.
"Uh...okay, you, uh, may I ask you?" Mo Wuge said somewhat flusteredly.
"Will this exploration delve into the former capital of the Song Dynasty, and even that legendary plain where everything has crystallized?" He Lili asked directly.
Glass Wasteland? Chen Jing thought of a term, but didn't say anything.
He had only heard of such places, where the entire land was said to have been baked into glass, and the monsters roaming there were far more terrifying than those near Ash City.
It is said that the glass lizard that escaped to Meijing City was originally a monster from the lowest level of society living there.
Mo Wuge shook his head, somewhat nervously saying, "Currently, the gang's main investigation target is still the abandoned train line... The last time we suffered losses, it was also at a certain location on that line."
Chen Jing noticed a hint of disappointment on He Lili's face, but she quickly masked it: "Yes, Captain, please continue. If possible, could you tell us what you encountered?"
“At that time, all the members of the reconnaissance team…” Mo Wuge’s face showed fear, as if the scene was right before his eyes: “We saw a ball of rolling flames…”
"Then, a fireball flew out from near the flames, and when it reached us, it exploded into a huge ball of fire on our side..."
"All five of us were attacked by flames. I was lucky; I dodged in time and wasn't killed, but I passed out..."
Flames? Rolling flames using fireballs to attack? Chen Jing pondered these words.
Out of the corner of Chen Jing's eye, he saw Zhang Taoying close her almond-shaped eyes. The eyeball under her soft left eyelid began to roll, the traces clearly visible, like a small round bead covered with a thin layer of skin, highlighting her current anxious emotions, which could not be concealed at all.
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